NYC Strengthens Water System Security After Bombs Found in California

The Associated Press has reported that NYC authorities beefed up patrols and surveillance Thursday at critical points in the city's water system after pipe bombs were found in a portion of the California Aqueduct.

Ian Michaels, a spokesman for the city's Department of Environmental Protection, said that it was strictly a precautionary measure. The DEP protects the city’s water system that supplies 8 million residents.

Three pipe bombs were discovered Tuesday near a valve in a portion of the California Aqueduct, which had been partially drained as part of a routine check for submerged objects.

The California Highway Patrol said that if the bombs had been triggered, they could have opened the valve and released water. A bomb unit detonated them in a safe area.

It is not known if the bombs were placed in the aqueduct to intentionally disrupt California's water supplies, but Michaels said New York City wasn't going to take any chances.

New York City has the largest unfiltered surface water supply in the world. According to the DEP's Web site. Every day, some 1.3 billions gallons of water from this vast system is delivered to residents.

The New York City Water Supply System includes a watershed of 1,969 sq miles across eight counties north and west of the city.